Privacy Policy
At a glance
- WattGrowl has no account, no ads, no analytics and no tracking.
- We do not run servers for the app and we do not receive your location, sensor data or recordings. Everything the app uses is processed and stored on your phone.
- Location and motion sensors are used only to make the engine sound while you use Live Drive.
- Payments are handled entirely by Google Play. We never see your card or payment details.
- Data leaves your phone only when you choose to share it, or through your own Android backup to your Google account.
- We do not sell or share your personal information.
1. Who we are
WattGrowl (the “app”) is developed and published by Hyperlocal Weather App Yazılım Ltd. Şti. (“we”, “us”). WattGrowl synthesizes a combustion-engine sound on your phone and plays it through your car’s speakers. This policy explains what information the app uses, why, and what control you have over it.
2. Information the app uses
The app processes the following information on your device. None of it is sent to us.
Location (precise and approximate)
In Live Drive, the app reads your phone’s GPS to measure how fast you are going, so the engine note matches your driving. Location is used only for Live Drive: while the engine is running in Live Drive, while you record a drive with Live Drive selected, and while a screen that shows live sensor or calibration status is open. While the engine is running, location use continues with the screen off or another app open, because the engine runs as a foreground service with a visible notification. The app does not use location in the simulator or in garage rev mode, does not build a location history and does not send location anywhere.
Motion sensors
The accelerometer, gyroscope and related sensors tell the app how hard you accelerate, brake and turn, how the phone is mounted, and when the road is rough. These readings are processed in real time to shape the sound.
Audio output and Bluetooth
To play the sound correctly, the app checks which audio output is in use (phone speaker, Bluetooth, cable or USB) and its device name, for example your car stereo’s Bluetooth name. If you turn on the option to restart the engine when your car reconnects, the app remembers the Bluetooth address and name of that audio device on your phone so it can recognize the same car. Android asks for the “Nearby devices” permission only when this option needs it. The app does not scan for, or connect to, other Bluetooth devices.
Steering-wheel and media buttons
The app receives media button presses (play, pause, next, previous) from your car or headset so you can control the engine and shift gears. These presses are acted on immediately and are not stored, except as events inside a drive recording you choose to make.
Drive recordings (optional)
You can record a drive to review it later. Recording happens only when you start it, or when you turn on automatic recording in Live Drive (off by default). A recording contains timestamps; speed, heading, altitude and their accuracy as reported by GPS; motion sensor readings; engine, audio and settings values; your phone’s make, model and Android version; and the name of the audio output in use. Recordings do not contain your latitude and longitude. They stay on your phone unless you share them.
Diagnostics
If the app crashes or is closed by Android, it keeps a short report on your phone (what happened, the app version, your phone model and Android version, and the app’s state at that moment) so the problem can be found. Reports are never sent automatically. You may choose to share one with us, for example by email.
Settings and your creations
Your settings, calibration, and the engines, vehicles and mixes you create are stored in the app’s private storage on your phone.
| Information | Why | Leaves your phone? |
|---|---|---|
| Location (GPS speed) | Match the engine sound to your speed in Live Drive | No |
| Motion sensors | Acceleration, braking, mounting, road roughness | No |
| Audio output name and type | Route and tune the sound for your speakers | No |
| Car’s Bluetooth address and name | Restart the engine when the same car reconnects (optional) | No; also excluded from backups |
| Drive recordings | Review your drives (optional) | Only if you share them; excluded from cloud backups |
| Diagnostics | Find and fix crashes | Only if you share them |
| Settings and creations | Keep your setup | Only through your own Android backup |
| Purchase status | Unlock Live Drive | Handled by Google Play |
3. Purchases
Live Drive is unlocked with a yearly subscription or a one-time lifetime purchase made through Google Play. Google processes the payment under the Google Privacy Policy and the Google Play terms of service. We never receive your card number or payment details.
The app asks Google Play on your phone whether you own Live Drive and keeps that answer on your phone so it works offline. The app’s internet access is used only by Google Play’s billing library for this purpose. Google provides us, as the developer, with limited order information (such as the order number, product, price and country) for accounting, refunds and support. You can manage or cancel a subscription at any time in the Google Play Store under Payments & subscriptions.
4. When data leaves your phone
- When you share. When you share a drive recording, a diagnostics report or a link to the app, Android’s share sheet sends it to the app and recipient you choose. That app’s privacy policy then applies. If you send something to us, we use it only to answer you and to improve the app, and we delete it when it is no longer needed.
- Android backup. If you have turned on backup on your phone, Android may back up the app’s settings and creations to your Google account, under Google’s privacy policy. Drive recordings, diagnostics, the remembered car connection and the purchase cache are excluded from cloud backups. When you move to a new phone with a device-to-device transfer, recordings may be transferred too; diagnostics, the car connection and the purchase cache are not.
- Nothing else. The app contains no advertising, analytics, crash-reporting or tracking services. We do not sell, rent or share your personal information with anyone, and we do not use it for advertising.
5. Permissions
- Location – measures speed in Live Drive (see section 2).
- Notifications – shows the “engine running” notification and its controls.
- Nearby devices (Bluetooth) – recognizes your car’s audio connection for the optional automatic restart.
- Foreground service and wake lock – keeps the engine sound playing with the screen off.
- Vibration – optional engine haptics in the simulator and garage.
You can deny or revoke any permission in Android’s settings. The rest of the app keeps working; Live Drive needs location to follow your speed.
6. Storage, retention and deletion
- Everything the app stores lives in its private storage on your phone.
- The app keeps at most the 20 newest drive recordings and at most 1 GB of recordings; older ones are deleted automatically. You can delete any recording in the app at any time.
- Diagnostics reports are kept on your phone for troubleshooting and are deleted with the app’s data.
- To delete everything, clear the app’s storage in Android’s settings or uninstall the app. To delete a backup, manage your backups in your Google account.
- Because we do not hold your data on our servers, there is nothing for us to delete on our side; anything you have emailed us is deleted on request.
7. Security
App data is stored in Android’s app-private storage, which other apps cannot read. Files you share are handed over through Android’s share sheet with temporary access granted only to the app you choose. Purchases are verified by Google Play.
8. Children
WattGrowl is not directed at children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone, including children. If you believe a child has sent us personal information, contact us and we will delete it.
9. Your rights
Depending on where you live (for example California under the CCPA/CPRA, other U.S. states, or the European Economic Area and the United Kingdom under the GDPR), you may have the right to know, access, correct or delete personal information about you, and to opt out of its sale or sharing. We do not sell or share personal information, and the app’s data stays under your control on your phone. For any request or question, email us at the address below; we will respond within the time the law requires and will not treat you differently for exercising your rights.
10. Changes to this policy
We may update this policy when the app changes. The effective date above shows the latest version. If a change affects how your information is used, we will say so in the app or its store listing before it takes effect.
11. Contact
Hyperlocal Weather App Yazılım Ltd. Şti.
Email: info@wattgrowl.app